The Wisdom of John Muir
John Muir has many descriptive titles. He’s been called a naturalist, author, botanist, zoologist, glaciologist, environmental philosopher, inventor, mountaineer, co-founder of the Sierra Club, and Father of our National Parks. His biographer Steven Holmes, added another title: the patron saint of 20th Century American environmental activity. So, who was this extraordinary man?
John Muir (1838-1914) was born in Scotland and immigrated to the U.S. with his family when he was eleven. The family settled on a farm in Portage, Wisconsin. While attending the University of Wisconsin, he signed up for a botany course. In class one day, under a towering locust tree, a fellow student picked a flower from the tree and explained how this gigantic tree was a member of the pea family. Muir wrote, “This fine lesson charmed me and sent me flying to the woods and meadows with wild enthusiasm.”
Muir eventually dropped out of college and enrolled in “the university of the wilderness.” He walked 1,000 miles from Indiana to Florida, enjoying and studying nature the entire way. Having contracted malaria in Florida, he was prevented from walking to South America as he had planned. When he recovered, he walked instead to Calfornia where he worked at several jobs to support himself. Muir saw nature not merely as a practical benefit for humankind–trees to give us lumber, mountains to give us coal. He saw nature as something valuable for its own sake. He also appreciated nature for the spiritual qualities it possessed. Seeing Yosemite for the first time, he wrote: “No temple made by hands can compare with this.”
Muir was keenly aware of the connectedness of all things, writing, “When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.” He fought to save areas from human development. The preservation of Yosemite as a national park is one of his greatest achievements. In 1880 he married Louisa Strentzel with whom he had two daughters. For ten years he helped manage his father-in-law’s 2600 acre orchard in California. But he always yearned to return to the wilderness on a regular basis. His understanding wife would shoo him away so he could get his dose of nature. Sometimes, he took one of his daughters with him.
When Muir was offered a teaching position at Harvard, he turned it down saying, “I never for a minute thought of giving up God’s big show for a profship.” His later years were devoted to writing, an occupation he found challenging–even though he wrote over 300 articles and 10 major books. He once complained, “This business of writing books is a long, tiresome, endless job.” He thought prose was “a weak instrument for the reality he wished to convey.” He believed, “One day’s exposure to mountains is better than a cartload of books.” Thank goodness, his wife supported and encouraged his writing, for even today his essays and books are still widely read. I will close with one of my favorite quotes from this remarkable man: “Everyone needs beauty as well as bread, places to play and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike.”
For reflection:
Have you ever heard of John Muir before? If so, when and where?
Did anything stand out for you about John Muir?
Have you experienced the healing power of nature in your life? When and where?
I chose for our video today Susan Boyle singing the refrain from the hymn “How Great Thou Art.” The nature scenes are just the kind that John Muir devoted his life to preserving for future generations.
(Disclaimer: I am recommending only Susan Boyle’s video. I am not recommending the other videos that automatically pop up after this video. Viewer discretion is advised.)
I invite you to write a comment below on the refection, the photos, the video…
“What Are You Doing Here?”
Recently I was reflecting on the story of the prophet Elijah hiding in the cave. You are probably familiar with the story. Elijah is running for his life. He has angered the “wicked” queen Jezabel, and she has sent her henchmen to find him and kill him (1 Kings: 19:1-18). Shortly after crawling exhaustedly into the cave, Elijah hears a voice. It is God who asks him, “What are you doing here?”
I think that’s a very good question to hear God asking of us–as we sit down to pray each day, as we settle into our pew before Mass, or as we enter our place of work each day whether that place is our home, office, manufacturing plant, store, school, hospital–or wherever.
This is the question I like to hear God asking me when I begin my prayer. I find myself answering this question in a wide variety of ways. Here are some sample answers to that question. Maybe you might find yourself in some of these answers. Or maybe these answers might generate your own answers to this question.
+ I’m here to praise You and give thanks to You for all the blessings in my life–beginning with the gift of life itself.
+ I’m here to reset my “spiritual GPS” before I venture into this brand new day, a day I have never lived before, and a place I have never been before.
+ I’m here to speak my heart to You–not just my mind. Help me find the words.
+ I’m hear to listen to You speak to me. Please speak loudly and slowly and clearly, so I might begin to understand what You might be saying to me. Let me listen with the ears of my heart as well as my mind.
+ I’m here to get some peace, some rest, some encouragement.
+ I’m here to report to You… to debrief… to say, “So, that’s where I am now. What’s next?”
+ I’m here to say “I’m sorry” to You for: (pick any!) my ingratitude… impatience… crabbiness… self-centeredness… greed… pride… judging others… lack of trust in You… laziness…
+ I’m here to get the courage to say “I’m sorry” to someone I’ve slighted… taken for granted… offended… spoken harshly to…
+ I’m here with my heart filled with suffering humanity whose faces I see every time I close my eyes. I am overwhelmed… I feel powerless… so I’m bringing them all to You.
+ I’m here to ask, to plead, to beg, even to grovel for your help.
+ I’m here to hide (temporarily) from the storm I’m experiencing right now… and the storms happening all over our hurting world.
+ I’m here to grieve the loss of ___ whom I’m missing so much today.
+I’m here to have some fun with You, to play a little, to find some reasons to laugh. After all, the great St. Teresa of Avila heard You say to her once when she went to prayer: “Enjoy me!”
+ I’m here just to be in silence with You for a little while, knowing that “silence” is often Your preferred way of comunicating with us.
+ I’m here to say to You again–as I’ve been trying to say ever since I uttered my very first prayers to You: “I love You THIS MUCH!”–with my arms extended as far and wide as they will reach.
For reflection:
Do any of these answers resonate with your own experience?
How would YOU answer God’s question, “What are you doing here?”
Did any of today’s photos speak to you?
And here’s a question I have for you: “What are you doing here–reading this blog?” (I’m curious what your answer might be. That’s all…)
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PS: Our annual Chicken Barbecue & Boutique will be held on this coming Sunday September 28 from noon until 5:00 on the NDCL Campus, 13000 Auburn Road, Chardon, OH. Go to our website for details: sndusa.org. I’ll be at the “Book Nook” in the boutique from noon until 3:00. I’ll be selling my books at a discount–and I’m giving a few of my books for FREE! Stop and say hello!
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Sometimes a song answers the question: “What are you doing here?” I think this song does. It’s “I Need You” by Matt Maher. I sometimes play this song to reset my “spiritual GPS.”
(Reminder: I am recommending this video by Matt Maher. I am not necessarily recommending any of the other videos that appear after this video. Please use your discretion.)
I invite you to comment on this reflection below… I know how much my readers enjoy reading all the comments!
Do You Have Any Pet Scapegoats?
(Introduction: September 28 is World Day of Migrants and Refugees. The Church has celebrated this day since 1914. That’s 111 years! I wrote this reflection not with that day in mind. But after I wrote it, I realized the words below are indirectly related to this day, a day on which the Church calls us to “empthy and action” on behalf of migrants and refugees all over the world.)
I’ve been reflecting on scapegoats lately. As you know, a scapegoat is a person or group who is blamed for the wrong doings, mistakes, faults, or sins of others. The word goes back to the Bible (Leviticus 16) when the Jewish leader would symbolically lay the sins of the people onto a goat who would then be banished into the desert to die. The people were in effect saying, “Good riddance, goat! Good riddance all our sins and wrong doings! Now we’re pure again!” (Poor goats!)
History is replete with scapegoats. Witches (usually women) were blamed for the Black Death in the Middle Ages as well as the evils in 17th century Salem, Massachesetts. (Within one year, 200 people in Salem were accused of witchcraft, 20 were executed.) Perhaps the most blatant example of scapegating in recent memory occured in Nazi Germany when Hitler blamed Germany’s economic problems mainly on the Jews. In essence he promised, “Get rid of the Jews, and Germany will thrive again!” Before it was over, 6 million human beings (mostly Jews) were systematically put to death in horrific ways. Throughout history, a common scapegoat has aways been immigrants who are accused of “polluting” the particular nation’s “pristine goodness.” Sometimes individuals have become scapegoats–such as Socrates, Marie Antoinette, and (some argue) even Jesus. More about that later.
Psychologists tell us that scapegoating has its roots in a phenomonon known as displacement. Psychologist Neel Burton, in Psychology Today writes, that displacement occurs when “uncomfortable feelings such as anger, frustration, envy, guilt, shame, insecurity are redirected onto another, often a more vulnerable person or group.” When this happens, those uncomfortable feelings are temporarily replaced “by a crude but consoling sense of affirmation and self-righteous indignation.” Just look at many of our mass shooters or assassins. If you read their “manifestos” you will often see how their scapegoating led them to the awful killing of people they considered “the source of our evil.”
How do we deal with this “deep-seeded impulse to scapegoat”? Here are a few ways:
+ by acknowedging scapegating’s existence in our contemporary world–and even acknowledging the tendency within ourselves.
+ by humbly acknowledging our own sinfulness. Let’s face it, most of you who read this blog are basically good people. But even good people can do bad things, make mistakes, be judgmental, be swayed by irrational thinking, or be selfish at times. How do we “atone” for these failings within ourselves? By making amends or asking for forgiveness–or by buying another goat?
+ by dealing in a healthy way with the inevitable tensions that come with being a human being and with trying to live in harmony with other human beings–some of whom are very different from ourselves. It takes only a few minutes to find a scapegoat for society’s problems and our personal problems. It takes a lifetime of hard work to strive to live and work in harmony with other flawed human beings–and with our own flawed self.
+ by learning to deal with our “uncomfortable feelings.” What do we do with our feelings of insecurity, shame, anger, sexual tension, frustration, fear, envy, guilt? Do we bring these to our prayer? Do we find some trusted others–counselors, spiritual directors, confessors, good friends–with whom we can discuss and deal with these feelings?
Fr. Ronald Rolheiser has written several columns on scapegoating. He says, “Christianity is the only religion which worships the scapegoat, the one who is hated, excluded, spat upon, blamed for everything, ridiculed, shamed, and made expendable.” But notice how Jesus responds to the terrible puishments being inflicted upon him. He doesn’t lash out against the perpetrators. He absorbs the evil and transforms it into new life–ultimately by forgiving the perpetrators. His mother Mary also “stands” by the cross and watches her son being put to death. Throughout the Gospel, Mary is shown “pondering” the events of her life. Says Rolheiser, “To ponder in the Biblical sense means to hold, carry, and transform tension so as not to give back in kind.” We see this response not only in Jesus and Mary, but others such as Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Dorothy Day, Fr. Daniel Berrigan, Sr. Dorothy Stang, and many others.
My prayer for all of us is this:
Loving Jesus, help us to follow in your footsteps as we deal with the inevitable tensions of daily living. Let us be men and women of humility, not arrogance or pride. Help us to be mindful of our own failings and sinfulness, rather than projecting them onto others. May we find healthy ways to deal with the uncomfortable feelings that sometimes assail us–such as anger, frustration, envy, lust, guilt, shame, fear. Give us the love and courage it takes to do the hard work of working together to make our world a better place. And finally, we ask for your mother’s gift of pondering… that we may reflect on the events and happenings in our daily life, so that we may find your presence and life-giving actions within them. Amen.
For reflection:
Did anything stand out for you in this reflection?
Have you ever witnessed a person or a group being treated as a scapegoat?
Have you ever felt you were being treated as a scapegoat?
How do you deal with uncomfortable feelings?
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We Sisters of Notre Dame will host our annual chicken barebcue and boutique on Setember 28 on the campus of NDCL in Chardon. Check our website (sndusa.org) for details. Come and join us and enjoy a delicious dinner and shop at our boutique. I will be at the Book Nook in the boutique (in the school cafeteria) from noon until 3:00. Sister Kathleen Glavich and I will be selling our books–some at a discount. Plus I’ll have a few of my “gently used” books I’ll be selling at drastically reduced prices. And both Sr. Kathleen and I will even be giving a few of our books away FREE.
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Here is a very simple song that asks for forgiveness. It’s called “Forgive Me Lord,” and it’s produced by Surgenor Music.,
(I am recommending only the video “Forgive Me, Lord.” I am not necessarily recommending the other videos that appear after this one. Discretion is advised.)
I invite you to leave a comment below:
Little Kernels of Spiritual Nourishment
As you know, I read alot. Besides reading scripture everyday, I also pray with small periodicals that nourish my prayer–such as Living Faith, Living with Christ, and Give Us This Day. In addition, I always have several books by my reading/prayer chair. Often I come across little kernels of nourishment, a sentence or two, that comfort, challenge, puzzle, or inspire me. I will share fifteen of these little recent kernels with you today.
1. “O Lord…incline your ear to me” (Ps. 71:2) When I prayed these words I thought: Sometimes my prayer begins with a loud “PSST!” directed toward God!
2. “As Christians, we are NOT free to not care about others.” Rev. Miranda Hassett, St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church, online somewhere.
3. I do not think we are ever without fear…. It is being able to endure the fear and still know that God is with us in our fears…. Perhaps that’s really what faith is–to be able to believe though we are afraid.” Theresa Kane, Sister of Mercy, from Give Us This Day, August 22, 2025, p. 232.
4. “Because of Ruth’s kindness, she changed from a foreigner to an ancestor of David, Israel’s first dynastic King.” Patricia Livingston, Living Faith, August 23, 2025. I thought: with my family history, I am VERY close to being a foreigner in this country. Only my parents stand between me and my four “foreigner grandparents” who immigrated from Bohemia. Maybe that’s one reason I care so much about immigration.
5. “In God’s perspective, if you have more grain than you need, the issue is not how to store it, but how to share it.” Fr. George Smiga, from Living with Christ, August 2025, p. 16. I thought, “It’s time to clean out your closest again, Melannie, and donate some of ‘your’ good clothes to someone who needs them.”
6. I am a Christian,” I concluded, “because the story of Jesus is still the story I’m willing to risk being wrong about.” Rachel Held Evans, Inspired, p. 164.
7. “There is no way to God apart from real life in the real world.” Barbara Brown Taylor.
8. “To paraphrase the moral theologian James F. Keenan, SJ, who said this about compassion, being a good friend is ‘entering into the chaos of another person’s life.’ And even if it’s just one person, it will make all the difference. For both of you.” James Martin, SJ, Give Us This Day.
9. “The truth is that I’m a mystery, even to myself. It’s like trying to solve an equation with too many unknowns. And if I can’t solve my own equation, who am I to think I can solve someone else’s? When I get judgy, I’m trying to train myself to stop and think of one word: “Unknowns.” Then I look for something in the person to appreciate. That’s ground-level grace, and it’s a better way.” Susan Pitchford, Give Us This Day, June 2025.
10. “The roadmap Mary provides us at the wedding feast of Cana is simple and profound: “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5). This is the roadmap that will lead us to heaven.” Bishop Frank J. Caggiano, Living with Christ, August, 2025, p. 19.
11. “I also like the concept expressed by the Bengali poet, Tagore. He says: ‘Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings while the dawn is still dark.'” Fr. James McKarns, Living Faith, August 10, 2025.
12. “The Lord will help them on their bed of pain; in their sickness, you tend even to the bedding” (Ps. 41:4). The image of God fluffing my pillows when I am sick in bed is very comforting for me.
13. “The woman at the well provided the ‘come and see”; Jesus did the heavy lifting and the loving.” Melanie Rigney, Living with Christ, August 2025, p. 22.
14. On grieving: One reason ancient people rent their clothes and covered their heads with ashes: “They knew that keeping it together is overrated.” Jan Richardson, The Cure for Sorrow: A Book of Blessings for Times of Grief.
15. And sometimes you find the perfect little one-sentence prayer that expresses exactly what you want to ask of God: “May God make us firm in faith, constant in hope, steadfast in love, through the power of Christ living in us. Amen.” Give Us This Day, August 2025, p. 301.
For reflection:
Are there any kernels here that caught your attention today? Feel free to share which one(s) with us below. You don’t have to say why it caught your attention if you don’t want to.
From your own reading or listening lately, did you find another kernel that nourished you? If so, would you like to share it with us below?
Did any of today’s photos catch your eye–or heart?
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PS: Our annual Chicken Barbecue & Boutique will be held on Sunday Sept. 28 from noon – 5:00 on our NDCL campus. Go to our website (sndusa.org) and click on the Chardon region. Then click on events to get all the details. Dinners ($18 each) can be ordered online or purchased on Sunday. Each dinner includes 1/2 chicken, coleslaw, potato chips, roll, and a slice of apple pie. I will be there at the Book Nook in the cafeteria with my books from noon until 3:00. Stop by and say hello!
We Sisters here have learned a new song recently. Most of us seem to like it. It’s called “We Tend the Ground” by Curtis Stephan. It’s inspired by Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si which focuses on caring for our environment. Many times a song can be a kernel of spiritual nourishment too!
(Disclaimer: I am recommending only the video I have posted here. I have no control over the videos that appear after the video I chose. Some are fine, but others I am NOT recomending. Please use your discretion.)
I invite you to leave a comment below–on the 15 “kernels,” the photos, or the song…
Using Works of Art During Prayer: Eugene Burnand
For many years I have been drawn to using works of art during my prayer. When I made my annual retreat in the past, I would be sure to pack a couple of books of paintings and photography to take with me. Now I take my ipad and go online. I figure, during the year, I almost always pray with words–scripture (of course) and poetry and songs. So focusing on the visual arts during my retreat was a refreshing change for me.
Recently I came across a Swiss artist I had never heard of before although I was familiar with one of his best-known paintings, “Running to the Tomb on Easter Morning.” (More about that later.) The artist is Eugene Burnand (1850-1921), a man with incredible talent who is well-known in Switzerland and France, but little appreciated outside these areas. He was a realist painter of nature. “The Bull in the Alps” (featured above) is a fine example of his nature work. I love this painting! I am drawn by the bull’s colorful coat. I want to reach out and feel its texture. (But of course I don’t dare!) I marvel at his massive neck and chest, his strong leg muscles, his horns–all revealing the colossal power of this singular animal. And in the background, I glimpse the deep, deep valley below. This bull is up really high–and he’s standing right on the edge too! How daring he is! I wonder: is he bellowing? There’s breath coming from his muzzle. Is he calling to the mountains–or does he see a small herd of lady cows across the great divide? Is he lonely? Triumphant? Regal? Despite all his power, does he long for something beyond himself? For me, there’s so much beauty here–in the grassy pasture on which he stands (there are some bright colored flowers easily seen in the huge original painting). The deep valley with a river running through it, the towering mountains–some snow-capped–all compliment the beauty of this amazing bull! What must the bull’s Creator be like to have fashioned him.
As Burnand grew older, he became increasingly interested in painting human beings. A deeply religious Protestant, he looked to the Bible for inspiration. He was dissatisfied with traditional illustrations of the Bible. He believed the people in the Bible should be depicted as real everyday people. In his own illustrations he often used his neighbors and ordinary people as his models. One of his major religious works was an illustration of 32 parables of Jesus consisting of 76 paintings, drawings, and sketches. That endeavor took him four years to complete. Burnand was also deeply affected by World War I. He was amazed at the wide range of people who had been drawn into the conflict. As a result, he did a series of 104 pastel portraits of participants in the war, focusing not on the leaders, but on “the lowly.”
So now, let’s reflect on Burnand’s painting of St. Peter and St. John running to the tomb on Easter morning. Some people say this is “the greatest Easter painting ever,” and yet it doesn’t even show the Risen Jesus! We begin by putting the painting within a context. Some women have been to the tomb on Easter morning to anoint the body of Jesus. But when they get there, they find the stone rolled back and the tomb empty. What’s more, they see an angel who tells them Jesus is risen–and they should go tell the disciples. Terrified, the women run like heck to tell the disciples.
This painting shows St. John and St. Peter running to the tomb to see for themselves. We begin by simply gazing at the painting… slowly.. and for however long it takes. You can do this on your own, or these words might help you: Notice what you notice… the faces of each man… their hair, eyes, mouth, facial expression… notice their clothing, colors and textures… their hands… what do the clasped hands of John say to you? what about Peter’s hands? notice their posture, their leaning forward… how do we know these men are running?… Then raise a few questions for yourself: what do you detect in their facial expressions? fear? anxiousness? hope? disbelief? joy? What do you notice about the background… the sky?… These men have not seen the Risen Jesus. That will come later. They only have the story of the women. Are those women delirious and hysterical? The men want to see for themselves… I ask myself: what do these men and I have in common? Can I relate to them and their experience? Why do some people say this painting is such a great Easter painting? Does it capture all of us who have not seen the Risen Lord but want desperately to believe the story is true? Does this painting lead you to prayer… to the Risen Jesus?
I will leave you with a few more paintings by Burnand:
For reflection:
What did you notice in Burnand’s painting “Running to the Tomb on Easter Morning?” Would you like to share with us anything about this painting in the comments below?
Do any of you use the arts–visual, musical, literary, dance, or others–for your prayer? If so, would you like to share some of the things you have used?
Are you involved with the arts–as creators, teachers, lovers? Would you like to share some of your experiences with us?
Do any of Burnand’s other paintings speak to you here?
Our video is a short (8 min.) commentary on Burnand’s painting. Two individuals share their thoughts on the painting. The video also includes some close-ups of the painting and additional information you might find interesting. I did!
(Disclaimer: As I mentioned before, I have no control over the videos that appear after the one I’ve selected ends. Some are fine. But others I certainly would NOT recommend. As they say, discretion is advised.)
Please feel free to jot down a comment below. We all love hearing from you!
